A Life Goes By
by ThatsHowYouKnow
Summary: It has been many years since Giselle died in childbirth, and an elderly Robert still struggles with the pain of loss. So he invites his two daughters to his place for Mother's Day. Please review!


A Life Goes By

_**An **_**Enchanted**_** FanFic by ThatsHowYouKnow**_

_**Based on characters created by Bill Kelly.**_

He sat in the comfortable cushioned chair by the front window. He was in his bedroom; a large mattress rested right behind him. The window overlooked the front porch, as well as the driveway. He quickly checked his wristwatch, which read 3:55 PM. She was supposed to be here by 4:00. Only five more minutes.

Robert Philip stood up, grunting uncomfortably as he did so. He supported himself on a metal cane, and began to slowly drag his feet toward the bedroom door. He reached it, and exited the room, gently closing the door behind him. Robert moved through the house hallway, until he arrived in the living room. In here was a massive 3-D television, a coffee table made of red oak, a large couch and three more chairs with pillows set on them. Upon seeing the couch, Robert walked over slowly and softly caressed the end.

A weak smile appeared on his ancient features as memories flooded his head. This was the same couch on which she had slept the very first night he had ever met her. He could still see her lying there, in her ridiculous Andalasia wedding dress, with her hands nestled snugly behind her head while she had a content smile on her beautiful face. He stared at the spot for an instant longer. Then, Robert picked up his feet and moved on. His cane clunked on the ground with every step he took, as he next made for the kitchen.

He walked in, surveying the stove and sink, as well as the microwave oven that sat on the counter. It was a fairly simple kitchen, probably because Robert rarely ever used it. Most nights he would eat out for dinner, because it was too much to take, staying in this house every evening. A house that felt so empty. Robert looked around, surveying everything, almost as if he were afraid that it all would change the moment he turned away. Suddenly he heard a loud slam. Was that a car door?

As fast as he could at his age, Robert walked over to the front door. He threw it open to see, in the driveway, a sleek Lexus parked. The driver door opened, and out walked a beautiful woman, about 36 years of age. She had brown hair and green/hazel eyes. Robert unleashed a huge smile as the woman walked toward him, her arms outstretched.

"Hey, Dad!"

Robert embraced his daughter tightly, patting her on the back. "You made it! I'm so surprised! Last time you got lost and I was sitting here on my old ass waiting for twenty minutes!"

Morgan Philip grinned at the memory. "Oh, I know. This time I used the GPS, so that helped. Believe it or not, I actually was kind of late starting out, because Eric wasn't feeling too good."

"Oh, really? What's wrong?"

"Just a fever. It's nothing. He'll be fine in a day or so. How've you been?"

Robert looked at the ground. "Well, I've just been kind of, you know, hanging in there. Every morning is a nightmare, thanks to this damned back. I still take my meds at noon and night, so that hasn't changed at all. I just got a new cane the other day, didn't you notice?"

Morgan grabbed his cane, and inspected it, her polished nails stroking it thoughtfully. "It's great. Where did you get it?"

"In town. It's only a few miles drive. Living in the country is a huge improvement. Everything is quiet, and peaceful, and…"

Robert caught movement in Morgan's car. He looked at her quizzically. "Morgan, there's someone hiding in the backseat."

Morgan turned to look, and a huge grin filled her features. "Oh, will you look at that. There is! Let's see who, shall we?"

She then made a waving motion with her right hand, and the person in the car saw the signal. They opened the door, and climbed out. Robert's jaw dropped.

"Amy? Is that really you? Oh, my lord!"

She was a little younger than Morgan, but not by much. Robert hadn't seen her in three years, since she moved to Kentucky. Amy was the exact image of her mother. The red hair, blue eyes, fair skin, slightly pointy nose…

Robert took his cane back from Morgan, and walked toward Amy. She threw herself at him, laughing happily. Robert felt tears well up in his eyes. "Jesus, be careful, while I still have a back! How are you? Wow, where did you come from?"

Amy let go of her father, and gave him a quick look-over. He was so much older. His hair was grayer, and his skin had greatly wrinkled. But she looked at his eyes, and they still had that youthful shine. As long as he had those eyes, she didn't mind his condition at all.

"I've missed you so much, Daddy. Morgan invited me to come along, and so I took a plane to New York. There, she drove in and picked me up, and then we came down here. She knew that you would be surprised."

Robert chuckled. "She knows how much I love surprises. You look amazing, you know. So much like her."

Amy blushed. She always felt awkward when her father brought up her uncanny resemblance to her mother.

"Come in, both of you," said Robert, and he led Amy to the porch, where Morgan had been standing, smiling at the unexpected reunion. The three of them walked into the house and Morgan commented, "Still the same dump, Dad."

Robert shot her a look. "What are you talking about? This place is completely clean!"

"Dad, we both know how much of a slob you are. Remember the old apartment? That place was always a mess. That is, until…"

Morgan's sentence died the moment she saw Robert's expression. He had that faraway look in his eyes again. "What the hell is wrong with me, this place looks great," she quickly finished. Behind her, Morgan heard Amy moving toward the couch. The same old couch, which her dad had insisted on bringing with them after they moved out of the city into this part of the country. And she knew just what his attachment to this piece of furniture was for.

Robert saw Amy sit down, sinking slightly into the cushions, and he supressed a sad grin. The resemblance was unbelievable. "I'll get some coffee for us, that okay?"

His daughters both nodded, and Robert went into the kitchen. He winced as he felt a cramp in his side. _I need to slow down_, he thought. Behind him, Robert heard footsteps. He turned around and saw Amy entering the kitchen. She said, "Daddy, let me help. I can get the cups."

"Thanks, honey. By the way, how's Andalasia Fashions-Kentucky Branch-going?"

Amy paused in her search through the cupboards to answer, "Oh, just fine. We've made a big deal with some people, and next month we should be shipping a couple thousand dresses. Business is looking great."

Robert looked at her fondly while his hands picked up the coffeepot. "That's wonderful. Your mom would be so glad that her daughter's seeing success with the store she started."

Amy sighed. "Yeah, I know."

Robert noticed her expression. "What's wrong?"

She gave a weak smile. "I just still wish that I could have known her."

Robert swallowed hard. "Well, things happened the way they did, and…we cannot change it."

He took the pot in one hand, while balancing himself on the cane with the other, and walked into the living room. Behind him came Amy with cups. Morgan was already sitting in one of the chairs at the table in the center of the room and both Robert and Amy took seats next to her. Robert passed around the coffee, and they all poured themselves a cup. For a moment the three sat there, sipping quietly, unsure of what to say. Then finally, Amy spoke up.

"Morgan, how's Eric doing?"

"Well, he was pretty sick when I left the house to come get you. Don't worry, though; Patrick's looking after him. Pat's a good dad, and he knows how to take care of a sick five-year-old."

Amy nodded, and then turned to Robert, who was staring into his cup. "Um, how've you been doing without Gipper? I remember you telling me over the phone that he had died, right? A couple months ago?"

Robert looked up from his cup. "It's difficult, waking up and not having him lick my face off. But he's at peace now, so that's that."

Robert's voice seemed slightly stilted as he said this, and his face appeared to harden.

Morgan softly chimed in, "We know how much you loved him, Dad. It's okay."

Robert glared at his first daughter. "I'm a big boy, I can handle it. I'm pretty used to losing the things I love, you know."

An awkward silence followed this remark, and Robert took a deep breath. "Sorry, Morgan. Didn't mean to sound like an asshole," he mumbled.

"No, it's my fault," said Amy quickly. "I shouldn't have brought it up. I'm sorry, Daddy."

"It's okay," said Robert. He took another sip, before saying, "Gipper was a good dog. I'll miss him. But it was his time, you know? I guess everyone has a time…wonder when mine is?"

Morgan and Amy shared an alarmed look. "Don't say that," they said in unision.

"I was just kidding, girls," replied Robert. "Besides, we really shouldn't be talking about things like that on Mother's Day. So let's cheer up, literally." He lifted his teacup in a toast. Amy and Morgan laughed as they knocked their cups with his, before taking a large gulp.

The rest of the day continued in that manner, with the three of them sitting at the table, sipping tea and eating snacks. They talked about their lives at home, and shared their fondest memories of Giselle. Well, Morgan and Robert did at least. After the talking, Robert revealed gifts for Morgan and Amy. He had planned on mailing Amy hers, back when he thought that only Morgan would make his invitation to celebrate Mother's Day at his house, but since she was here now, he figured he might as well give them personally. For Morgan, he had bought children's clothes and toys for little Eric.

For Amy, Robert gave up some of his most treasured photos of a heavily pregnant Giselle, photos that he had never shared with anyone before. They were taken during a date to Central Park, her favorite place in the whole city. It pained Robert to relinquish them, for they were souveniers from their last day together before she went into labor, and then… But he knew that Amy would deeply appreciate them. As expected, she was moved to tears when he presented them to her, and Amy gave Robert the strongest hug that he had ever received in his life. He could have sworn he heard his spine pop somewhere.

Before they knew it, the sun disappeared, plunging the countryside into darkness. The clock in Robert's bedroom now read 10:34 PM. Morgan and Amy took forever to get ready to leave, and Robert couldn't blame them. These days rarely came anymore. If he could, he would let them stay the night, but Morgan needed to get back to the city for work tomorrow, and since Amy had no transportation, she would have to leave too. Robert's heart ached as he gave Morgan one last embrace, and while she walked outside to start the car, he stopped Amy by gently grabbing her arm. "Amy, could I have a moment."

She nodded, and walked back inside. Robert closed the door, turned to her, and sighed. "It was so nice spending time with you. I really feel terrible about not calling you often enough. But I think my memory might be going, or something. I can just never remember."

Amy smiled, and hugged her father for the billionth time that day. "Daddy, it's fine. I'm pretty busy, anyway, so you'd probably just get the answering machine. Don't worry about it."

Robert felt a lump growing in his throat as he looked into her eyes, filled with so much love. Before he could stop himself, he gave an involuntary shudder. Amy noticed, and concernedly said, "Daddy? You okay?"

Robert waved his hands dismissively. "I'm alright. I just still get spooked every time I look at you. You look so much like-"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Oh, Daddy. Cut it out. I know, I know, I'm like…Mom reincarnated, or something."

Robert laughed. "I wish."

Amy looked over his shoulder and saw through the window Morgan waving for her to hurry up. Sighing, she said to her father, "Well, I'll see you next time, okay? Whenever that may be."

Robert gave her the best smile he could manage, despite his head screaming how it wasn't fair and how he shouldn't let them leave yet. Awkwardly, he extended his hand. Amy gave a little giggle at the gesture, and took it, shaking softly. Robert winced when he heard her giggle. Again, just like Giselle used to…

A loud honk from Morgan's car blared out of nowhere. The two jumped, and then laughed in relief. Amy pecked Robert one last time on his cheek (Robert's whole body exploding with discomfort at the touch), before she walked out the door and up to the car. She climbed into the passenger seat, and both her and Morgan waved out from behind the windshield. Robert, standing in the doorway and leaning on his cane, waved back as the Lexus pulled out of the driveway, spun around, and slowly drove back down the long road leading away from the house. Eventually it shrunk out of sight into the distance, with only its headlights still faintly visible in the night darkness.

Robert continued to mechanically wave his hand for another minute, before he noticed what he was doing and put his arm down. Sadly, he shuffled back into the house, and looked at the living room wall's clock. He should be getting ready for bed. Robert stared at the clock for another moment, wishing that he could somehow turn back time and re-experience the entire day over. He already ached to be with his daughters again. Letting out deep breaths, Robert resigned himself to the fact that he would simply have to wait until the next occasion to see the both of them. He then made his way to the bedroom. There, he picked out a pair of fresh pajamas, and then Robert walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Once inside, Robert undressed slowly, and stepped into the shower stall. Turning on the warm water, he stood upright with his head bowed beneath the stream. Though the warmth made him feel much better, Robert couldn't seem to truly overcome the terrible feeling of emptiness inside his chest. As he slathered his wrinkly self in soap and scrubbed shampoo into his grey hair, Robert found he could only think about Amy's laugh. It disturbed him how much it resembled her mom's. And it, on a fundamental level, infuriated him that God had cursed him with a daughter that would constantly remind him of what he had lost.

But he felt no ill will towards Amy herself; no, he loved her so much it seemed like a miracle that his aging body could contain so much emotion. She and Morgan both, was his entire world now. Robert had long ago given up caring about himself. After Giselle's…he had moved out of his New York apartment and into the country just outside of a small town. It was just too unbearable of a proposition; for him, little six-year-old Morgan and a beautiful newborn baby to live in a place with so many happy memories that now seemed painful after what had just happened. He couldn't bear staying in that place a moment longer, because everywhere he looked, he saw Giselle staring at him, with that wonderful smile of hers. Every night he spent in their bed, he had awful dreams about her screaming in pain, whimpering for him to help her, while he was trapped behind some invisible barrier, helpless as a lost puppy.

It hadn't been healthy for Morgan either, who was hit just as hard by the tragedy. She and Giselle had been so close, despite the fact that Giselle wasn't Morgan's biological mother. Robert had gotten Morgan from a failed relationship with a previous woman, who had left him after they found that they simply weren't emotionally compatible. The betrayal still burned at Robert, all these years later, but he remained eternally grateful to the woman for having given him his first daughter.

And a few years later, Giselle had appeared. He still remembered how they had first met, how he had caught her falling off a billboard and had taken pity on this pathetic, bewildered young girl who seemed so lost and frightened. Sure, he had thought Giselle was a few cherries short of a full pie at the time, but the days that followed changed both of their lives. Robert and Giselle grew to fall in love, though for the longest time Robert had been in denial about it. But eventually the time came when, for Giselle's sake, he had to accept that this insanely optimistic and joyful woman had totally enchanted him. Their first kiss, he remembered, was done under such strange circumstances that even now Robert couldn't help but chuckle at the oddness of it.

Minutes later, Robert stepped out of the shower. Dressing into the pajamas he had picked out, he returned to the bedroom. He lay his cane against the wall next to the bed, then slowly got under the covers. For a moment Robert simply lied there, staring at the ceiling. The lamp on the nightstand was still on. So Robert reached over and pressed the small button on the stand. Immediately the room plunged into darkness. Leaning his head into the pillow, Robert let out a long, exhausted breath.

And then it happened again…

_ Robert remembered everything. The smell of the hallway, the white floors, the panicked yells from the room a few feet away. He had been sitting on one of the hall's benches, having been forced to leave the room by the doctors. Robert sat there, wringing his hands and shaking with terror. Tears had pooled in his eyes, but he struggled to hold them back. He wanted to be strong in this moment._

_ And then the doctor slowly exited the room, closing the door softly behind him. He cautiously walked up to Robert, and Robert raised his head to give the doctor his most pleading look. "Please. Just please. Don't say it."_

_ The doctor, who's name tag read Stefen, swallowed hard, before very quietly saying, "Mr. Philip. I'm so sorry to tell you this, but-"_

_ "NO" roared Robert and he leaped to his feet, snarling. "No, no, no, no! Don't say another word, you bastard. Don't you dare! That's not what happened! She's still in there! I'm going to see her!"_

_ And so he stormed past the doctor, and didn't get three steps towards the room before he felt suprisingly strong hands clench onto his shoulders. Robert struggled as he shouted every expletive he knew at the doctor, demanding that he be let go. But the doctor had a vice-like grip that refused to heed Robert's requests. The doctor gritted through his teeth from exertion, "Sir, you can't go in yet! We need to-!"_

_ Robert spun around and tossed the hardest punch he could. His fist collided with the doctor's mouth with a loud crack, and he saw a tooth or two flying into the air. Swearing in pain from the blow, the doctor released Robert, who instantly ran up to the door and tossed it wide open. He rushed inside, where he saw the bed surrounded by medical equipment and three sober doctors, whos heads were bowed. When they saw Robert's abrupt entrance, they hesitated slightly, before deciding to quickly vacate the room. Robert stood in the doorway as the doctors ran past him into the hallway, staring with horror._

_ There she was, lying on the bed. Her body looked as if, in her last moments, she had been flailing and struggling against the straps holding her down. Her mouth and eyes were still open, locked in a look of pure agony and fear. Robert could still see the tears of pain on her beautiful cheeks. He very slowly approached the right side of the bed, and knelt down so that he was gazing right into her empty eyes. Robert took one of her hands in his, and gently squeezed. No response. _

_ "Giselle? H-honey?"_

_ No response._

_ "Please…_please_, just answer me. Just one word. That's all I want. Giselle…"_

_ No response._

_ Robert felt a terrible cracking feeling in his chest, which he knew must be his heart. Breathing was now difficult. And then he hit upon an idea. It was a desperate idea, but it had worked the last time. Shaking, Robert leaned over to Giselle's face, and whispered, "Please. Don't leave me."_

_ Then he very gently kissed her on the mouth, being as soft as he could. He allowed the moment to last just a little longer, before breaking away. He looked for any sign. He tried to see if her ghost-white skin had regained any color. He studied her eyes to see if the light had returned. But there was nothing._

_ Robert wanted to roar in fury and grief. And yet, he somehow couldn't make a sound except for a pathetic gasp. His brain seemed to have frozen, trapping him in a state of shocked apallment. He simply could not believe what was happening to him. _

_ Why hadn't it worked? The last time, she had been as good as dead, and yet his kiss had awoken her. Wasn't that how it was supposed to work? Wasn't True Love's Kiss _the most powerful thing in the world_? So powerful that it could defy death itself? Why? Why? _Why_?_

_ How could this have happened?_

_ Robert could not keep back the sobs as he stared at Giselle's cold, lifeless body. That morning had started off completely normal. Giselle had got up first; gotten dressed in one of her custom-made outfits; showered and then made breakfast for him and Morgan. Then, after Robert dropped Morgan off at school, he and Giselle returned to the apartment to relax. It was while she was watching television that Giselle's water broke. She had panicked, and called for Robert, who was in the kitchen making coffee. He bolted to her side, and immediately knew what he had to do. _

_ Robert called paramedics to take Giselle to the hospital, and the doctors allowed Robert to ride in the ambulance with her, who claimed to be having terrible pain throughout her whole body. He remembered her face as she looked at him, hoping that everything would turn out okay. He had tried his best to assure her that pain was normal, but she insisted that this was something else. If only he had listened..._

_ They arrived at the hospital minutes later, and Giselle was quickly given a check-over. It was while the doctors were checking her heart that Giselle went bezerk, crying and screaming in fright. She completely lost all control, and the doctors had to strap her down to keep her from hurting herself further. Robert alone understood why she would be so scared and confused. She was completely unfamiliar with pregnancy. In Andalasia, storks delivered children. So the poor girl had no way of preperation, even after Robert explained the entire process to her. _

_ He remembered the night that they had sex for the first time. It had been after Giselle got deeply sick from trying champagne, and that was the first indication for Robert that Giselle's body couldn't handle the physics of our world. He should have known better than to make love to her so quickly. She hadn't known anything, aside from a quick overview by Robert, about sex, and he remembered how shocked she was whenever Robert tried some crazy position. He had actually found it really cute how Giselle was so clueless. When she had her first orgasm, her reaction was priceless._

_ A few days after their night together, Giselle began feeling odd and had weird mood swings. A visit to the doctor confirmed Robert's suspicions: Giselle was pregnant. He remembered how thrilled Giselle had been upon learning that they were going to have a baby, but then as the months went by, she learned firsthand how motherhood worked in this world. The morning sickness, the temper flare-ups, the gaining of weight…she had been especially amazed when her stomach started to grow. This was a wholly new phenomenon to her, and she was in constant awe of what was happening to her, despite the suffering she had to endure. That was Giselle for you: even when she was hurting, she still managed to look at everything with an unbelievable optimism._

_ Robert had long suspected that Giselle had been bottling up how scared she was of all the changes she was going through, and when she blew up in the hospital, Robert knew he had made a mistake. Giselle didn't deserve to go through this. She didn't know it, but she was in for a lot more pain come time for the actual delivery. Robert remained by her side as she expressed her fears and hopes, even as doctors readied themselves for the big moment._

_ And then it came._

_ Giselle went crazy again, moaning and screaming and sobbing. She said that everything hurt more than she had ever experienced before. The doctors had to give her a sedative to calm her down a little, and once she had settled enough, they began coaching her through the delivery. Robert gave as much encouragement as he could as Giselle worked. Finally, after two minutes of tears and screams, a baby girl appeared. For a moment, everyone thought that things had worked out. But then, disaster struck._

_ Giselle stopped breathing, and her heart failed._

_ That was when Robert was forcefully removed from the room and plonked down in the hallway bench. After the baby was whisked away, the doctors tried their best to revive Giselle, but evidently they had not succeeded. As Robert now knelt there, his head buried in Giselle's freezing shoulder and his whole body racking with every sob-_

_ "Robert?"_

He snapped his eyes open. The room was still in total darkness, so he leaned over and turned on the lamp. The new light revealed only the room as he had left it. Robert cautiously slipped out of bed, his feet lightly touching the floor, and he stood by the mattress for a moment, listening intently. And then, it came again.

_ "Robert?"_

He bolted for the bedroom door, threw it open, and rushed into the living room, shivering in terror. _Please, don't let this be happening…_ He saw the couch, the same couch. Suddenly he couldn't hold back anymore. Robert fell to his knees, gasping as tears streamed from his eyes. He buried his face in his hands as he knelt there, crying. Then, for the third time…

_ "Robert?"_

"Leave me alone," he moaned.

_ "But it's me. Don't you want me?"_

"Please…don't…"

_ "I'm here for you."_

Robert leaped to his feet, and spun around. She was standing right behind him, dressed exactly as she had been in the hospital. Her long red hair cascaded down her shoulders, and her blue eyes gazed at him with sorrow. When she spoke, her voice had an odd, otherwordly vibration to it. Other than that, it was Giselle just as he had remembered her.

Robert walked up to her, putting his face so close that he nearly was touching hers. He snarled, "You aren't real. You're just in my mind. You can't fool me. I don't care."

She looked hurt. _"Of course you care, Robert. Why else would I be here?"_

Robert was shaking, no longer from fear, but now from pure rage. "How dare you? You don't know! You'll never know! I've had to suffer so much…I can't believe you-! You can't-! I never-!"

Giselle reached out to caress Robert's cheek, and upon contact he felt the skin that she touched turn ice cold. Then he completely lost it.

"You left me!" he roared, and Giselle jumped backward, taking her outstretched arm with her. "You left Morgan! You left your newborn daughter! You stupid bitch! You caused me so much pain, so much heartbreak! It's your fault! I hate you! I hate you, and I'll never forgive you for what you did to us! You let me fall in love with you, only for you to give up and let death take you, just when I needed you most! You could have hung on; you could have just gathered more courage! We needed you to be strong, Giselle! All of us did! Me, Morgan, Amy…"

He stopped to breathe, and the Giselle apparation just stood there, looking at him with so much pity and…what? Remorse? Robert gulped in air, and the tears in his eyes continued to pour stronger than before. When he finally spoke again, his voice was so soft he could barely hear himself.

"I just miss you so, so much…"

Giselle sadly nodded. Then, before Robert could say anything, she seemed to fade out of existence, until he found himself looking at blank space. He stood still as a statue, and found himself hoping beyond hope that the apparation would reappear, but it didn't. She had honored his wish.

She had left him…again.

Robert bowed his head, and the emotion blazing in his heart felt so painful. His tears dripped from his nose and onto the floor. Then, he suddenly couldn't breathe. Everything seemed to blur. His arm seemed to cramp up, and to his terror he felt foam bubbling in his mouth. It was happening. The emotion _had_ been too much. He heart had finally given up.

And yet, as he found himself collapsing onto the ground, landing on his side with a loud thump, Robert felt his fear replaced with another emotion.

Joy.

He was going to be with Giselle again.

And as his heart beat its last, Robert Philip was able to mumble five final words:

"I'm coming, my true love…"

END 


End file.
